For anyone who knows me it probably comes as a shock that it’s taken even this long for me to write about Twin Peaks.  A lot has been said about Mark Frost and David Lynch’s masterpiece, so much so that I don’t really think I have anything of substance to add as discourse of it’s universe, story and themes.  Naturally I’m pretty excited about the 18 new episodes that are headed to screens next year, but time has proven that people revisiting their earlier work often isn’t any great shakes so I’m quite reticent about the whole thing.

So putting aside the storyline and universe, one think which I don’t think enough people mention is how truly beautiful the show’s aesthetic is.  Without question if I could call one fictional place my home, it would be Twin Peaks.  There are so many great spots throughout the series that I’m only going to pull out a few of my favourites.

The Double R Diner is a pretty predictable choice; as a meeting point for most of the characters it’s featured quite prominently.  As with everywhere in Twin Peaks, wood panelling is featured throughout (the trees are very important in Twin Peaks and this is echoed throughout the production design) as are the leafy green plants which sit beside the tables.  The thing I really like here is the colour scheme which is warm and homely in a mix of reds and creams (particular points go to the orange glass booth dividers).

The homely touch is also evidenced in the soft edges of the diner.  Sure there are sharp corners, but the curve of the counter and the chairs leads the eye to thing of the area as comfortable.  Just taking a look at it as a whole you can get the feeling this place is lived in and isn’t going to see a lick of paint in a little while. 

The team on the show manage to perfectly encapsulate the feel of a mountain town diner barely standing on it’s own legs.

The Sheriff’s Department is another great example of wood-panelling-everywhere decoration vibe that seems to have gone on.  The green plants also remain throughout, but here it’s the eccentricities that I really like. 

The two plants flanking the door - matching weaved pots but completely different plants in each, and one overflowing with soil.  Though if you didn’t look closely you wouldn’t notice at all.  Then you have the waiting area, a small corner shelf houses a selection of ornaments and a lamp.  In a Sheriff’s Station.

But most of all I love the concertina door that shields the kitchen area from prying eyes, a design nightmare that works perfectly.  A really nice colour scheme of brown and green runs through this location, with the front doors painted green being an especially nice touch.

Finally I’m going to single out Catherine Martell’s house, the Blue Pine Lodge.  Sure I could have picked the Great Northern Hotel but it seems a little obvious (as mindblowingly amazing as it is).  The interior, darker than most in the show, perfectly captures her character and the whole thing definitely has echoes of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.

A kitchen counter crammed with plates of fruit with copper pots and pans hanging over head, a wood burning stove with a stone chimney, a shuttered library area and a seating area away from the main lounge.  It’s a house full of secrets, with lots of nooks and crannies.  

It can’t be easy to create lived in environments that really reflect the characters that play their parts in them, but this show manages to do it with such an ease that it creates the essential belief immediately.  You don’t even notice it.  Production designer Richard Hoover has some great further shots detailing some of the locations on his website here.

If you haven’t watched Twin Peaks, I have to question what you’re doing with yourself right now and why you aren’t ordering the Entire Mystery Blu-Ray from Amazon immediately, it comes in a beautiful box and looks jaw droppingly fantastic in HD.  Do it now.

Big thanks to Shadow Of Reflection for having a site filled with screen caps, so I didn't have to do it.